What we do saves more than just Africa's wildlife

What We Do

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Wildlife Conservation

Wildlife Conservation

Protecting an astounding diversity of species. (Humans included.)

Africa is home to certain species that are facing extinction, including mountain gorillas and Grevy’s zebras. By putting safeguards in place like training rangers, using sniffer dogs, and empowering communities, we’re helping to ensure all of Africa’s wildlife survives.

Critical to protecting Africa’s wildlife are the local people. Sharing the land, often alongside each other, can lead to struggles for resources and deforestation. If people and wildlife learn to live together—inside and outside of protected areas—the future for all will thrive.

Challenges

The survival of Africa’s wildlife depends on its relationship with people.

Whether it’s humans poaching wildlife or wildlife attacking people’s livestock, it’s a problem that cuts both ways: one of the biggest challenges is reducing conflict between people and wildlife. Our programs can, and must, serve both.

Solutions

Our solution to the wildlife conservation crisis is hands-on, up close, and personal.

Here are some of the ways the African Wildlife Foundation provides solutions that balance the needs of people and wildlife:

Using sniffer dogs to help prevent poaching.

By providing funding to organizations like Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS), sniffer dogs are trained to detect illegal animal products such as ivory and rhino horns. In some cases, sniffer dogs are also used to locate poachers.

Creating community conservancies.

Working directly with communities—and making sure members get direct benefits from conservation efforts—creates a positive impact for all. For example, in Zambia, elephants and other wildlife roam freely outside of protected areas, but development was threatening these historic wildlife habitats. At the same time, communities were having a hard and sometimes attack livestock belonging to pastoralists. AWF has helped communities create conservancies or wildlife management areas where locals agree to protect the natural resources

Implementing community projects that benefit both people and wildlife.

With a better understanding of specific community needs, we are implementing projects like rainwater tanks, which are deterring people from going into forests to collect water and causing deforestation.

Applying research to all AWF work.

We are putting our research to the test in all of our work. Some efforts include putting GPS collars on elephants in northern Tanzania so we can identify which land must be conserved. We also attach radio collars to lions in order to track population trends, seasonal movement patterns, and mortality.

Projects

Many of our conservation solutions have helped wildlife thrive, big and small. These are just some of the projects threatened species benefit from.

Reason #53 to get involved

With loss of habitat and prey, carnivores—like cheetahs and wild dogs—are hunting community livestock. As a result, farmers are forced to kill these species. African Wildlife Foundation needs support training scouts and funding bomas to protect livestock as well as negotiating buffer zones for wildlife.

Reason #61 to get involved

On the brink of extinction in 1996, the West African giraffe population is now steadily growing. However, their habitat in Niger is not formally protected. African Wildlife Foundation needs support funding efforts that reduce human-giraffe conflict within these crucial ecological buffer zones.

Reason #78 to get involved

Reason #67 to get involved

Already vulnerable to a number of natural predators, the kudu now faces loss of habitat due to habitat destruction and poaching. When you support African Wildlife Foundation, you support local communities’ efforts to protect wildlife habitats.

Reason #50 to get involved

Fewer than 900 mountain gorillas exist today. They live in areas suffering from the effects of civil war, poverty, poaching, and disease. Help fund efforts that include protecting gorilla habitats and keeping peace between locals and wildlife.

Reason #11 to get involved

Wildlife corridors allow migratory species, like the wildebeest and zebra, to roam safely. Without intervention, these free spaces are threatened by increasing development and agriculture.

Reason #24 to get involved

The African wild dog population is at 6,600 and declining due to habitat fragmentation, human conflict, and widespread disease. Your support allows for wild dog scouts to monitor and protect this species.